PetMed Express reports web sales decline by 1.8%

Net income increased slightly on the year for the online pet pharmacy.

Web sales and net income headed in different directions in fiscal 2013 for PetMed Express Inc., a pet pharmacy that sells online at 1800PetMeds.com.

For the fiscal year ended March 31, the company reported:

Total sales of $227.8 million, a 4.4% decline from $238.3 million in fiscal 2012.

PetMed Express didn’t break out Internet sales in dollars in its fourth quarter earnings release, but did report that the web accounted for 77% of total sales for the year, compared with 75% in the previous year. Based on those percentages, web sales totaled $175.4 million in fiscal 2013, a 1.8% decline from $178.7 million in 2012.

Net income was $17.2 million, up by 3.0% compared with net income of $16.7 million in the prior year period.

“We were able to increase our gross margins and decrease our operational expenses to improve our bottom line results for the quarter and fiscal year,” says Menderes Akdag, president and CEO. Gross profit increased 175 basis points, or 1.75%, which Akdag attributed to a change in product mix to higher-margin items, including generic medications. Operating expenses decreased by 124 basis points, or 1.24%, mainly due to a reduction in advertising spending, he says. “Sales were negatively impacted during the quarter due to the colder than normal weather,” Akdag says.